Guglielmana earns first All-Conference honors
Courtesy of UC Merced Athletics
UC Merced men’s volleyball freshman Jared Guglielmana rises up for a block attempt against Pacific Union a week ago. Guglielmana opened his collegiate career with 11 kills, the third player in Bobcats’ history to record double-digit kills in his debut. He was named the California Pacific Conference’s Attaker of the Week, his first All-Conference honor of his career.
Madera South boys volleyball standout Jared Guglielmana concluded an excellent debut with the UC Merced men’s volleyball team with the California Pacific Attacker of the Week honor.
In addition, teammate and fellow freshman Ryan Kilgore was the Cal Pac Defensive Player of the week and teammate Tyler Vincelli was the Cal Pac Setter of the Week. It is the first career Cal Pac honor for all three Bobcats, which was announced Monday.
Guglielmana earned his award for his 12-kill performance in the Bobcats sweep over Pacific Union on Feb. 24. He hit .318 in the match and became just the third ever Bobcat to record double figure kills in his collegiate debut. Guglielmana joins the likes of Joseph Webb and Chris Morikawa. Aside from his strong attacking efforts, Guglielmana also recorded his first career service ace, dig, block and assist. In total, Guglielmana had six digs, which was good for second among all participants in the match. No other UC Merced outside hitter has recorded more than six digs in a match this year.
In a three-set victory over Simpson on Monday, Guglielmana came off the bench to tally four kills in one of the three sets. He also recorded a dig.
UC Merced men’s cross country head coach Vincente Velarde (Madera) had the third fastest finisher at the Dominican Tri-Meet on Feb. 21. Adrian Alvarez-Gil (Madera South) was fourth on the team with an eighth place finish.
Velarde made his coaching debut at the first Dominican Tri-Meet on Feb. 13 where freshman Elizette Ysais became the first runner in UC Merced history to win her collegiate debut and joined former Madera South and UC Merced runners Sofia Rios and Karina Martinez as winners of an event.
The Fresno Pacific baseball season began with a bang last week with a pair of doubleheaders. The Sunbirds swept Simpson University by a combined 59-17 score.
In the 29-5 opening victory, Brian Hefner (Madera) hit is first home run of the season. He drove in three and scored a pair of runs.
A pair of Liberty teammates, James Hernandez and Aramel Villa, are playing for the Fresno Pacific men’s soccer team. Hernandez, a senior, recorded an assist in the past two games, a win over Academy of Art and a tie against Dominican. He has started the past two games after coming off the bench in the previous two.
Meanwhile, Villa, a freshman, has appeared in all five matches for the Sunbirds and has recorded two shots on goal.
Embry-Riddle senior cross country runner Nicholas Hernandez (Madera South) placed third on the team at the Battle Born Collegiate Cross County Challenge on Feb. 19. Hernandez finished 13th overall to help the NAIA fourth ranked Eagles to a second place finish to Div. I Dixie State.
At the same meet, Eduardo Herrera (Madera South) paced the Colorado Buffaloes’ cross country team with a third place finish in the yellow races, the fastest of the meet. Herrera helped the 10th ranked Buffaloes to a third place finish behind second ranked Northern Arizona and fifth ranked Stanford.
Robbie Niino (Madera) scored a goal in the Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Conference Western Region Championships, but it wasn’t enough in a 26-9 loss on the first day of the tournament.
Defender Christian Meza (Madera South) recorded an assist while in the starting line-up for Simpson University in a 4-1 victory over Providence Christian on Feb. 25. Meza’s Stallions’ teammate David Vasquez also had two shots on goal in the game. Both Vasquez and Meza earned starts in a 4-3 loss to Oregon Tech on Feb. 21.
Meza also earned an assist in a 2-1 victory over Bushnell University on Feb. 19.
Notre Dame (Ohio) women’s soccer freshman Mia Alvarez (Madera) played 25 minutes off the bench in a 1-0 victory over West Liberty in the season opener on Sunday.
In his New Mexico State football debut, Jonah Johnson (Madera South) threw for 187 yards and a touchdown in a 43-17 loss to Tarleton State on Feb. 21. He also rushed for 27 yards, but threw three interceptions.
Linda Perez (Madera) helped the Minot State University distance medley relay team to a second place finish at the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference track and field championships on Feb. 27. Perez’s team broke the school record and placed second in the race. They also provisionally qualified for the NCAA championships and are ranked 26th in the nation. In addition, Perez placed 10th in the mile run with a time of 5:07.08, the second fastest time in Minot college history in the Div. II era.
York College freshman softball player Sofia Perez (Madera) got her first collegiate hit — a double — on Feb. 21 against Doane College. She and York College head coach Roni Miller (Madera) have had only had three games this season, but are slated for five this weekend at the Friends Tournament in Wichita, Kansas.
San Diego Christian freshman softball player Taylor Valerio (Madera South) injured her knee in practice on the day before she was to make her collegiate debut. Because of the injury, Valerio will undergo surgery and miss the rest of the season.
Fresno State pinch-running extraordinaire Aliyah Cuevas (Madera) has been off and running this season. She has appeared in eight-of-eleven games for the Bulldogs and has scored two runs with a stolen base.
Vanguard University’s Johanna Lewis (Liberty) is off to a hot start. She is batting .323 in her first 10 games. She is second on the team with 10 hits to go with a pair of runs, a pair of doubles and five RBIs. She also leads the team with three stolen bases.
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If there are any other Madera athletes competing on the collegiate level, email tylert@maderatribune.net.
